Defending shop windows from unruly revellers at the Carnival

IT IS THAT time of year again. In two days’time, the Notting Hill Carnival will commence. Swarms of revellers will converge at Notting Hill Gate to watch or participate in London’s famous late August carnival. Most of them will be good-natured and well-behaved, but inevitably there will be those who will try to create mayhem and chaos.

To defend against damage, intrusion, and vandalism, many householders and shop keepers barricade themselves to prevent expected problems, everything from broken windows to being adopted as casual toilet spaces. The main form of protection is the erection of wooden boards and the employment of security personnel.

One of the first businesses to put up boarding this year was our local Tesco supermarket. This made me think. And what I thought was that one of the important causes of unruliness is excessive consumption of alcohol. And where will there be a ready supply of this intoxicant? It will be at Tesco’s supermarket, which is now hidden behind ugly timber boards. The sales of alcohol will raise great profits, but what effects will it have on the properties of those who are unable to afford paying for boards and barricades?